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Your HRA public involvement newsletter
Issue 13, October 2023
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 A panel discussion at the HRA's strategy launch
Welcome
Hello everyone and welcome to your public involvement newsletter.
We have created a text only version of the newsletter that should be easy to print. For support with this, or if you need the newsletter in a different format, email the public involvement team on public.involvement@hra.nhs.uk or call on 0207 104 8161.
In this month's newsletter
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 Group discussion at the HRA's strategy launch in June 2022
We're not sharing any new invitations to get involved in our work this month.
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In this section, we aim to respond to one of the questions we're asked the most – how has our work improved things for other people?
This week, our new Community Committee will be meeting for the first time.
Because this is a completely new committee, one of its first jobs will be to shape how it works in practice and we are really looking forward to working with its new members to do this.
Selecting committee members is something we could only do with public involvement throughout the process. Anne-Laure Donskoy and Becky Purvis reflect on how they worked together to select the committee members.
Anne-Laure Donskoy, member of the HRA's Public Involvement Network
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'When a new committee is announced in any organisation, it is easy to feel a little sceptical, a kind of 'oh, no, not another committee'. However, the new Community Committee has a different pedigree, born out of the former Community Insight Group which brought together the different communities of people who support the work of the HRA.' |
Becky Purvis, Director of Policy and Partnerships at the HRA
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'Shortlisting was tough. We had lots of applications from people with different experiences and perspectives. And we were conscious that any application process favours people who are used to applying to things.
'Anne-Laure joined staff who work with different parts of our community to shortlist the anonymised applications. She helped us to have good discussions about how to approach shortlisting such different applications in a fair and consistent way.'
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Every year, HRA creates a business plan. This document describes the activities it will do between April 2023 and March 2024, and how we will measure our progress.
This year, the HRA invited members of the public to contribute to this process. We asked people to:
- check that our plans were true to our strategy
- identify areas of work that would benefit from further involvement from service users, patients, carers, and other members of the public
Peter Hart and Catherine McCarthy reflect on the process.
Peter Hart, a member of the public involved in health and social care research
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'The meeting was inclusive. It brought together the senior management group and other managers involved in developing plans for the financial year April 2023 to March 2024. In addition, Research Ethics Committee members, a Confidentiality Advisory Group member and Staff Forum members were present.
'The rich discussions and interactions throughout the day made the day extremely worthwhile.'
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Catherine McCarthy, Head of Corporate Portfolio Office at the HRA
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'I've learnt that it’s important to plan the involvement of the public early to give people the opportunity to get involved.
'I’ve also learnt that when you work for an organisation you naturally focus on internal perspectives, so it is refreshing to get the views of external participants.'
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In this section, we share news about some of HRA’s work that we think you may be interested in. You might also enjoy exploring the news and updates section of the HRA website.
 A presentation at a business planning meeting in January 2023
We want to improve our online learning platform and provide HRA staff and members of our HRA community with an online learning space that works for everyone.
Over the last few months, we have been testing a new online system and using feedback from members of the public and volunteers to make improvements. As a result, we have now closed the second testing pilot, and will be moving to NIHR Learn by next March 2024.
We’ll keep you updated regularly with the transition, but if you have any questions about our move to NIHR Learn, please get in touch with our HRA learning and development team.
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In this section, we share news of activities organised by other groups or organisations.
If you would like to include a news item relating to public involvement in social care or research, please email the public involvement team on public.involvement@hra.nhs.uk
 Image of the Co-Production Collective discussing ideas. Photo credit: Co-Production Collective
Co-Production Collective are looking for people willing to collaborate in their 'Measuring Success in Co-Production: Learning by Doing' programme.
What is the programme about?
Co-production is an approach to working together in equal partnership and for equal benefit.
The programme aims to support co-production and evaluation (measuring the benefits) of projects that focus on themes of mental health and wellbeing, and climate change.
Who is it for?
Whatever your level of experience, if you have an interest in the aims, you're welcome to take part.
How much funding is there?
There is funding for seven to nine projects, each of which will receive £10,000 to £15,000.
Funding will go to a host organisation collaborating with other groups or individuals.
What are the key dates?
- 5 October: express an interest in the programme
- 17 October: online workshop
- 27 November: deadline for applications
- 11 December: notification of decisions
How can I find out more?
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In this section of the newsletter, we introduce you to our colleagues and the people we work with.
Jacinta is a Communications Officer. She's been working with the HRA since February 2022.
What motivated you to work in this field?
I first became interested in communications during my time at university, when I studied French with Communications and Media at the University of Liverpool. In my previous role, as an Engagement Officer at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, I led on several communications projects for St John Ambulance, CIVICA and the Trust’s voluntary services team. It was through these experiences, supported by the learning I got through my degree, that made me want to pursue a career in this field. I was then fortunate enough to join the HRA as a Communications Officer in February 2022 – the rest is history!
What would you like us to know about your work at the HRA?
No two days are the same. As a Communications Officer, and working with my colleagues in the communications team, you quickly get used to a fast-paced office environment. There are so many touchpoints with people and projects across the organisation. In my time here, I’ve worked on various activities such as the HRA Strategy Launch in June 2022, Make it Public Week in March 2023, and the Shared Commitment Committing to Change workshop in April 2023. I enjoy being able to give helpful communications advice to colleagues and support them with newsletters, such as the Research Ethics Committee members’ learning bulletin and the public involvement newsletter. I’m also a big people person, so one part of my job that I love is getting to work closely with the HRA public involvement team and members of the public.
What are the interesting challenges in your work?
One aspect of my role that I’ve found quite challenging is website editing, maintenance and making sure all content is accessible. This has been a huge learning curve for me, but it’s come to be an aspect I really enjoy. In March, I led on uploading our Make it Public annual report in an accessible HTML version which was a big task, but I felt a huge sense of achievement once it was all done.
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If anything in this email is unclear or you have questions, please email the public involvement team on public.involvement@hra.nhs.uk or phone the public involvement team on 0207 104 8161. |
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